Analysis of Speech Act Theory.docx

Analysis of Speech Act Theory.docx

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AnalysisofSpeechActTheory

Abstract:

SpeechActTheory,withalonghistoryandsignificantbackgroundeffectsinEnglishstudy,ismotjustasimpletheoryaboutspeaking.Iwillanalysisthetheorybasedonthelinguistictheoryandpragmaticstheoryfromthedailyspeechandspeechact.

Keyword:

SpeechActTheory;linguistic;pragmatics

AnalysisofSpeechActTheory

SpeechActTheoryisthefirstmajortheoryofPragmaticswhichisacomparativelyyoungbranchoflinguistics.Wecantracethetheorybackto1950swhenJohnLangshawAustingavehislecture:

“HowtoDoThingswithWords”inHarvardUniversity.Fromthisinterestingtitle,wecanroughlyseewhatthetheoryisabout.Generallyspeaking,SpeechActTheoryisjustatheoryabout“sayingsomethingisdoingsomething”.Inthisessay,Iwilltrymybesttogiveacompleteanalysisofthistheory.SinceIamjustthebeginneroflinguisticslearning,Iwillmainlydescribeothers’viewsofwhatthetheoryis;howitcameintobeingandwhatthetheoryisforinthelinguisticfield.Meanwhile,Iwilladdmyownunderstandingsandanalysestothistheory.Specifically,Iwilldividethisessayintothreeparts:

PartI:

theoriginofSpeechActtheory—thePerforamtivesandConstatives,andhowtheseparationbetweenPerformativesandConstativesbecomesunclearandinapplicable.PartII:

thebirthofatheoryoftheIllocutionaryActandsomeinterestingtopicsrelatedtothetheory.

PartI.PerformativesandConstatives

Tobeginwith,Austinclaimsthattherearetwotypesofsentences:

PerfomativesandConstatives.InAsustin’sopinion,thesentenceswhicharenotdescriptiveandtheutteringofthesesentencesis,orisapartof,thedoingofanactionarecalledPERFORMATIVES.Incontrast,thosesentenceswhicharedescriptivearecalledCONSTATIVES.FromAustin’sdefinition,wecanconcludethattherearemainlythreeconditionsforasentencetobePerformatives.i.e,

A）Thesentencedoesnotdescribethings.

B）Thesentencecannotbesaidtobetrueorfalse.

C）Theutteringofthesentenceisfulfillinganact.

Now,welistsomeexamplesaccordingtothethreerequirementsabove

Ex.a）IdeclaretheSpringGalaopen.

b）Ipromisetofinishmyhomeworkontime.

c）Ibetyousixpenceitwillraintomorrow.

Austinoncecalledsentenceslike“Ipromise…Iknow…etc.”RitualPhrases（程式用语）.Later,heusedPerformativestoreplaceRitualPhraseinhislecture“HowtoDoThingswithWords”.Hesaidthatifweusethesesententialforms,wearefulfillinganact.However,thesesentencesmustbeutteredunderFelicityCondition（合适条件）includingproperprocess,people,situationandthoughts.IftheFelicityConditionisviolated,youarenotfulfillinganactevenyouutterthesentence“IdeclaretheSpringGalaopen”.SupposeyouaregoingtobeashowmanoftheSpringGalaandyoushouldmakesuchdeclarationintheopeningceremony.However,ifyouarepracticingthissentenceathome,thesentenceyouareutteringisnoteffective,becauseyouarenotmakingthedeclarationintherightplaceattherighttime.

However,AustinsoonfoundthattheseFelicityConditionswerenotapplicableasheimagined.TheyarejustappliedtosomePerformatives.Forexample,whenweusePerformatives,wedonotnecessarilyneedtoobeytheseconditions.Wecanuse“Igivemyword”toreplace“Ipromise”,orevenwecanuseConstativestoreplacePerformatives.Forexample:

“I’llcomeatnineo’clock”.Ontheotherhand,ConstativesalsoneedFelicityCondition.“ThepresentKingofFranceisbald”isnotsuitableforthepresentFrenchpoliticalsystem.

SincetheseconditionscannotbetheeffectivedistinctionsbetweenPerformativesandConstatives,Austinbegantofindanotherwaytodistinguishthem.HefocusedhiseyesongrammaticaldifferencebetweenPerformativesandConstatives.HefoundthatsomanyPerformativesuseFirstPersonSingular,PresentTense,ActiveVoice,andIndicativeMood.CanthesebethesignsforasentencetobePerfomative?

Absolutelynot.AustinfoundthatPerformativesalsocanuseFirstPersonPlural,SecondPerson,evenThirdPerson,PastTense,PassiveVoiceandImperativeVoice.Lookatthefollowingexamples:

Ex.a）Wepromisetocleantheroomafterwards.

b）Youareherebyauthorizedtopayforthepurchase.

c）Passengersarewarnedtocrossthetrackbybridgeonly.

d）Turnright

AlthoughthereareobviousdifferencebetweenPerformativesandConstatives,theyalsosharemanycommonalities.Aboveall,theycanbetransformedintotheotherformbyanotherexpressionwithoutviolatingtherules.Suchas（Ipromisetofinishitontime=Iwillfinishitontime）.TheoriginalpurposetodividesentencesintoPerformativesandConstativesistointensifythatsomewordsaredeeds.Orrather,sometimestosaysomethingistodosomething.However,Austinfoundthatwheneverwesaysomethingcanberegardedaswedosomething.Therefore,itseemsworthlesstodistinguishPerfomativesandConstativesandeveryproblemshouldbereconsideredfromgroundupagain.Then,atheoryoftheIllocutionaryActiscryingoutforattention.

PartIIATheoryoftheIllocutionaryAct

SincethedistinctionbetweenPerformativesandConstativescannotwellsatisfytheSpeechActTheory,Austinputforwardanothermoreeffectivetheory—theTheoryoftheIllocutionaryAct.InthelaterpartofHowtoDoThingswithWords,Austinmadeafreshstartontheproblemandconsidereditfromthegroundupagain,i.e.inwhatsensetosaysomethingistodosomething.Asheputit,“everysentencecanbeusedtofulfillanact”.Whycaneverysentencebeusedtofulfillanact?

Austinclaimedthatwhensomeonespeaks,heactuallycompletesthreeactions:

LocutionaryAct（说话行为）;IllocutionaryAct（行事行为）;PerlocutionaryAct（取效行为）.Here,wejustfocusouranalysisontheIllocutionaryAct.

AustinemphasizedthatfulfillingaLocutinaryactisfulfillinganIllocutionaryact.Forexample,whenwearefulfillingalocutionaryact,wealsofinishtheseactions:

putforwardoransweraquestion,provideinformationandpromise,declareaverdictorpurposeandvarioussimilaractions.NowwecangiveadefinitiontotheIllocutionaryact:

Anactwhichistoshowthespeaker’sintension.i.e.toshowwhythespeakersaylikethat,orrather,toshowwhatthespeakermeansbysayingthat.Inotherwords,whenwespeak,wenotonlyproducesomeunitsoflanguagewithcertainmeaning,butalsomakeclearourpurposeinproducingthem,thewayweintendthemtobeunderstood,ortheyalsohavecertainforcesasAustinpreferstosay.AlthoughAustinacknowledgedthat“force”canberegardedaspartof“meaning”,heclaimedthatitisbettertodistinguish“force”from“meaning”justasdistinguish“sense”from“reference”.

However,JonathanCohenviolentlyopposedtheTheoryoftheIllocutionaryAct.Hesaidthattheitismeaninglesstodistinguish“force”from“meaning”,orrather,itisratherdifficulttorecognizewhichis“force”andwhichis“meaning”inonesentence.Forexample,inthefollowingtwosentences,itishardtoseparate“force”from“meaning”.Inotherwords,“force”and“meaning”arethesameinthetwosentences:

Ex.a）Isitraining?

b）Iaskwhetheritisraining.

Bothofthesetwosentencesareaskingwhetheritisrainingornot,sothe“force”equalsto“meaning”inthetwosentences.However,weshouldacknowledgethatAustin’sdistinguishing“force”from“meaning”isreasonable.Forexample,someonemaysaytoyou:

“Youareafool”,andthenyoumayask:

“Whatdoyoumean?

”Youasklikethis,notbecauseyoudon’tunderstandthesenseoftheword“fool”andthereferenceoftheword“You”.Whatyoudonotreallyunderstandisthepurposeofthespeaker.Ontheotherhand,youprobablyknowtheintensionofthespeaker,but“Whatdoyoumean?

”showsyourdisagreementtoother’scomments.Theexampleperfectlyshowsthat“force”and“meaning”canbedistinguished.EveninCohen’sexample:

“Isitraining?

”,“Iaskwhetheritisraining.”,thetwosentencehavedifferentforces.Wecanuse“Isitraining?

”toinquirewhetherwecangoout,whetherweshouldtakeanumbrella.However,whenwesay“Iaskwhetheritisraining”,wemaynotbesatisfiedwithother’sanswerto“Isitraining?

”Therefore,twosentenceswiththesamemeaninghavedifferentforces.

JohnSearle,thestudentofAustin,alsoacknowledgedthatitisdifficulttodistinguishLocutionaryActandIllocutionaryAct,buthehashisownsolutiontothisproblem,thatis,useothertechnicalwordstoreplaceLocutionaryAct.AustinoncedividedLocutionaryActintothreesmallacts:

PhoneticAct（发音行为）,PhaticAct（措辞行为）,RheticAct（表意行为）.

Ex.a）Hesaid:

“Getout!

”------PhaticAct

b）Hetoldmetogetout.--------RheticAct

c）Shesaid:

“Aretheyathomeorschool?

”--------PhaticAct

d）Sheaskedwhethertheywereathomeorschool.-------RheticAct

Fromtheseexamples,wecanconcludethattheverbs“tell”and“ask”weusearejustIllocutionaryVerbs.Therefore,wecansafelysaythatPhaticActoverlapstheIllocutionaryActtosomeextend.Howtosolvethisproblem?

Searlesuggestedthatweuse“PropositionalAct”toreplace“PhaticAct”,andremaintheotherthreeacts.InSearle’sopinion,PropositionalActsequalstoReference（指称）andStatement（陈述）.Thus,thedistinctionbetweenLocutionaryActandIllocutionaryActbecamethedistinctionamongthefouracts:

PhoneticAct,PhaticAct,PropositionalActandIllocutionaryAct.

Here,IshouldpointanotherinterestingpointthathowtotranslatetheIllocutionaryActintoChinese.Intheearlydays,somescholarsjusttranslateditinto“言外行为”forthesakeofconvenience.Whatismore,“言外行为”canwellfitupwithChine